How safe is Pakistan for travelers?

The travel advice, stated first

• The FCDO advises against all travel to Balochistan Province, to within 10 miles of the Afghan border, to within 10 miles of the Line of Control, and to a long list of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts including Peshawar, Swat, Khyber, Kohat, Kurram, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, both Waziristans, Upper and Lower Dir, plus the Karakoram Highway between Mansehra and Chilas and the N45 up to Chitral including the Kalash valley.
• It advises against all but essential travel to Malakand, Mardan, Nowshera, Shangla and Swabi, to Azad Jammu and Kashmir, to within 5 miles of the Indian border, to Dera Ghazi Khan, and to all of Sindh north of and including Nawabshah.
• Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad are not on either list.
• Canada is stricter about Karachi, advising against non-essential travel to the city with named exceptions. Where two governments differ, the honest summary is that the risk is real and the boundary is a judgement call, not a fact.
• Travelling against advice can invalidate your insurance. Check the policy against the map.

Terrorism

• The threat is high and countrywide, worst in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but with attacks in Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore too. A suicide bombing at a mosque in Islamabad in February 2026 killed at least 36 people.
• Attacks have targeted Chinese nationals and, more broadly, people of East Asian appearance.
• Keep a low profile, vary routes and timings, and limit movement on Friday afternoons. That last one is the FCDO's own advice and it is easy to follow.
• Avoid processions, protests, rallies, religious gatherings and large public events.

Where you may not simply go

• Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and several districts of Azad Kashmir need advance permission from local or federal authorities, and there are prohibited areas around military installations, nuclear plants and bases. You may be turned back.
• Some areas require a No Objection Certificate from the Ministry of Interior, and local authorities will tell you if yours does.

Laws that carry very serious penalties

• Blasphemy is broadly defined, covers private and public comments including social media, and carries penalties up to the death penalty. Those accused also face a serious risk of public violence. This is the single law to be most careful about.
• Alcohol is illegal for Muslims. Non-Muslims may drink but need a licence from the authorities, and supplying alcohol to a Muslim is illegal. Public drinking or drunkenness means detention.
• Drug possession, even a small quantity, means prison, and cases move slowly.
• Do not photograph military establishments, airports, bridges, dams or anything from an aircraft.
• Same-sex sexual activity between men is illegal, with arrests and a real risk of violence.
• Unmarried couples living together is illegal, though the hotel-room rule is generally not applied to visiting foreigners in tourist areas.
• Dress modestly. Men and women should cover shoulders and legs; women should cover their heads in mosques, at holy places and in rural areas.

Roads and weather

• Road conditions outside the motorways are variable and driving standards erratic, especially at night.
• You need both a 1968 international driving permit and your own licence in the car, and the IDP cannot be bought outside your home country.
• Monsoon runs from late June to early October and floods every province. Landslides block mountain roads, and earth tremors are common.